Referring to FIG. 3, an upright type vacuum cleaner comprises a main body 20 with a suction brush unit 10 mounted therein, and a cyclone type dust collecting apparatus 30 received in a receiving portion 21 of the main body 20 of the vacuum cleaner. The cyclone type dust collecting apparatus 30 centrifugally separates dust and dirt from air, which is a technology well known in the related art. The cyclone type dust collecting apparatus 30 is fixed in the receiving portion 21 using a locking unit.
FIG. 1 is a cross sectional view of the cyclone type dust collecting apparatus 30 fixed in the receiving portion 21 by a conventional locking unit 100. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a main portion of the conventional locking unit of FIG. 1. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the conventional locking unit 100 includes a supporting bracket 101 disposed on a bottom plate 45 of the receiving portion 21 (see FIG. 3), a movable disk 111 rotatably disposed in the supporting bracket 101, and a locking disk 121 disposed at an upper portion of the movable disk 111 to move upward and downward.
A hinge axis 112 is formed at a center portion of the movable disk 111, and at a center of the hinge axis 112 an axis hole 113 is formed. The axis hole 13 of the movable disk 111 is rotatably connected with an axis 102 which protrudes at a center of the region surrounded by the supporting bracket 101. The hinge axis 112 of the movable disk 111 is rotatably connected with a hinge hole 123 at a center of the locking disk 121. On a top side of the movable disk 111, a cam 115 is formed along a circumference of the movable disk 111 at a predetermined inclination.
Also, on a bottom side of the locking disk 121 a cam 125 is formed along a circumference of the locking disk 121 at a predetermined inclination. Accordingly, upon rotating the movable disk 111 in a clockwise or counter clockwise direction, the locking disk 121 is moved upward and downward by the cooperation of the cam 115 of the movable disk 111 and the cam 125 of the locking disk 121. At an outer surface of the movable disk 111 an operating lever 118 is formed extending in a radial direction of the movable disk 111 for a user to rotate the movable disk 111 in the clockwise or counter clockwise direction.
At a bottom side of the cyclone type dust collecting apparatus 30, a receiving recess 133 is depressed inwardly for receiving the locking unit 100. At an inner wall of the receiving recess 133 a fixing recess 135 is formed to engage with the locking disk 121. For instance, upon rotating the movable disk 111 in the clockwise direction by moving the operating lever 118, the locking disk 121 is ascended. The locking disk 121 ascends into the fixing recess 135 of the cyclone type dust collecting apparatus 131, and by engaging the fixing recess 135 and the movable disk 111, the cyclone type dust collecting apparatus 131 is fixed.
However, the locking unit 100 of the conventional cyclone type dust collecting apparatus 30 described above has a complicated structure and a bulky size. Also, it is difficult to manufacture and assemble the locking unit 100, since the receiving recess 133 and the fixing recess 135 are respectively formed at the bottom side of the cyclone type dust collecting apparatus 30, to thereby increase the manufacturing cost. In addition, separating the cyclone type dust collecting apparatus 30 from the receiving portion 21 is complicated. Especially, the bulky locking unit 100 is exposed outside to thereby depreciate an appearance of the vacuum cleaner.
From the user's viewpoint, it is difficult to manipulate the locking unit 100 with one hand by moving the operating lever 118 in the horizontal direction with respect to the vacuum cleaner.